New GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance Features GO, REC and I-REC

*Watch Mary Sotos explain the Scope 2 Guidance.

The updated GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance features Guarantees of Origin (GO), REC and I-REC as mainstream instruments for documenting and tracking electricity consumed from renewable sources.The clarification companies will gain from the GHG Protocol Scope 2 Guidance has the potential to transform energy buying practices in the corporate world.

Companies and governments are increasingly looking to contribute to a sustainable future, by reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. But you can only change what you measure. International frameworks and reporting standards are key to help companies and governments map their green house gas emissions, report the results and signal to the market the demand for renewable energy. Today, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG-P) is the most widely used international accounting framework to understand, quantify, and manage greenhouse gas emissions.

To easily and transparently report emissions and origin of the electricity consumed, the World Resources Institute presents an updated Greenhouse Gas Protocol Accounting Guidance Scope 2. For the first time in Scope 2’s Accounting Guidance, Guarantees of Origin (GO), REC and I-REC are directly featured as instruments to document electricity consumed from renewable sources.

The GHG-P Scope 2 categorises indirect emissions from consumption of purchased electricity, heat or steam. “By the Scope 2 Accounting Guidance including Guarantees of Origin as best practice tracking system of power attributes, more companies are encouraged to document that they use electricity from renewable sources,” said Tom Lindberg, Managing Director, ECOHZ from Taiwan.

“Guarantees of Origin reduce companies’ CO2 footprint, increase awareness of the origin of the electricity consumed and send a signal to the market that companies prefer electricity from renewable energy sources. Over time this documented demand for low carbon energy solutions will change energy behaviour.” This will encourage businesses to measure, manage and report their greenhouse gas emissions from their electricity consumption and increasingly switch to power from renewable sources.